In June 2015, Minnesota lawmakers passed a measure requiring the state to examine and develop statewide swimming resources for kids. The commissioner of education must establish a working group of stakeholders to assess statewide access to swimming resources and provide recommendations "on the curriculum, resources, personnel, and other costs needed to make swimming instruction available in all Minnesota public schools for children beginning at an early age" by February 2016. The ultimate goal is to pass a mandate requiring swimming for all Minnesota children; however, the state must first address drastic inequalities in access to pools. For example, there is one pool for every 28,000 people in St. Paul (9.6% Latino and 15.7% African American) compared to one pool for every ...
In May 2012, Bike/Walk Central Florida launched a community-wide coalition to improve walkability and safety for children in Orlando (25.4% Latino), called Best Foot Forward. In June of 2015, Metroplan Orlando, the metropolitan planning organization, supported the expansion of Best Foot Forward to Osceola (48.6% Latino) and Seminole (18.6% Latino) Counties by funding $100,000 of taxpayer money. There is a strong correlation between walkability and reduced obesity. However, Latino populations typically lack access to safe walking routes thus suffer harmful health outcomes. Best Foot Forward implements a variety of initiatives to improve walkability and increase safety under their “Triple E” strategy, which is to Engineer safer environments, Educate drivers and pedestrians, ...
What is the most walkable route? Walking is considered one of the best exercise, as it is easy to do, doesn't cost anything, and can incorporated into a daily routine. However, walking is not always easy for Latino families to achieve with safe routes to schools and local grocers. How can you find the best route to walk? A new app dedicated to showing people the most "walkable" route is now available. The Walkability app uses star ratings to tell users just how easy it is to walk in that area by rating the routes' sidewalks, beauty, safety, and more. To learn more about how to use this resource, click ...
Painting a new picture of healthy living, 20 students from Laura W. Waring Elementary Schools reflected on designs for murals that would be captured on bikes displayed across the Philadelphia city. Obesity was reported to have a disproportionally affect on Latinos in Philly as a recent article, showed that 50.1% of Latino children ages 6-17 were overweight or obese in 2011, compared to 30.7% non-Hispanic whites. However, also mentioned was that Latinos in Philly are very involved in the music and art scenes. Bike share is something new in the city and the riding mural initiative is one way the city is trying to get people more excited about biking. Encouraging students to think about a healthier active lifestyle, teacher Sarah Folger and lead artist Candy Coated asked students ...
We know that bike lanes are a powerful prescription in the fight against obesity. But bike lanes aren't created overnight by magic bike infrastructure fairies. It can take months or even years for a bike lane to come to fruition. This infographic takes a look at the process behind creating a bike lane. Our Salud Heroes have been active in helping to expand walk/bike lanes for children and even organizing bike clubs. Step up and help end obesity in Latino communities by building bike lanes in your ...
Latino communities often lack access to safe parks and green spaces. This Complete Parks Playbook by ChangeLab Solutions can help decision makers in Latino communities assess and improve their park system. Decision makers cannot determine park access by park existence alone, but they must take into account numerous factors: how people travel to parks; how parks are designed; what types of activities and amenities are provided; how, by whom and when parks are used; what types of plants and trees are planted in parks; how parks are maintained; and how parks are funded. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the following 7 elements when determining the status of a park system: Connect: creating safe routes to parks
Locate: ensuring equitable access to park
Grow: planting and ...
How do you bring a community outdoors and provide green space for families in San Antonio? How about offering jobs and volunteer opportunities? The 63.2% of Latino families of San Antonio may be able to get more involved in outdoor activities through a new two-year initiative under the United States Department of Interior. The initiative was set to help conserve parks and enhance green space. YMCA of Greater San Antonio and the National League of Cities (NCL) have also provided 40,000 dollars towards a Community Coordinator, who will coordinate calendars and events to get youth involved in the initiative. Areas to be revived include the San Antonio Missions National Historical park.To get more involved in conserving natural spaces, youth and families can visit the Texas ...
Biking and walking are great ways to get the daily exercise that many Latino kids need. However, many of the areas in Latino neighborhoods lack safe playgrounds, or safe spaces to walk and bike. Florida is changing their states landscape with the plan of their new SunTrail Network, which will provide new biking and walking trails statewide. Governor Rick Scott signed and approved House Bill 2514-A for the new statewide Suntrail Network in Florida, bringing funding for $25 million for the new biking and walking trails for the area. The Suntrail Network, will be shared-use pedestrian and biking trails that are physically separated from roadways. Senate President Andy Gardner has supported the Suntrail Network and other trails in the area including the Coast-to-Coast connector trail, ...
The Underline, will be a trail under the Metrorail providing green spaces and biking areas for all the space under the current Metrorail in Florida. This 10-mile trail will connect Miami, Coral Gables, South Miami, and Pinecrest, providing green space and the "longest urban corridor connected to a transit system". A matching grant provided by The Knight Foundation is helping pave the way for the idea from Meg Daly, to become a reality. Having green spaces and active play areas will help give safe access to a healthier lifestyle for the large percentage of latinos living in the South Florida area. To learn more about The Underline, and it's plans, read the full article or visit the website ...
